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Monday, May 30, 2011

Happy Memorial day everyone! It's been a pretty rough week down here, not too much time for stamping. My sweetheart had to go in for back surgery on Thursday, so it was back and forth to the hospital (an hour away) ever since. He finally came home yesterday, so it's a bit of an adjustment to the regular routine.

Anyway, I have a card to share that I made a while back. Another make-your-own-patterned-papers card using one of the clear Roses BG sets LOTV released not too long ago. The polka dots were stamped with one of IO's Cover-a-card stamps.

I colored the image with Copics, and added a 'pearl' necklace with a Viva Decor pen.

I hope everyone has a fun, food-filled Memorial Day, thank a Vet and be safe! Thanks for stopping by!

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Hello fellow LOTV fans, it's that time of the week again. Our theme this Thursday is 'I believe in fairies'. Who doesn't love the LOTV fairies?! I know I do and this little darling is called 'On Tiptoe'. My first LOTV fairy stamp and I love her just as much as when I first inked her up.

I pulled out the ole Copic markers to color with this time, just to keep with the times. I do prefer my pencils, but it's good to keep practicing with all the other coloring mediums I have. I have to justify spending a small fortune for them, so they do get used once in a while, lol! I'm always afraid I'm going to run them dry though, and I'll have to invest in refills, which I can not afford at the moment! I've had them about a year and had to refill three already, hmmph!

See the pretty background paper? I made that with some of the clear 'additions' stamp sets. I used the 'Folk Flowers' set to stamp on a plain piece of light blue paper from a Memory Box collection. You know how you always get one or two plain papers in those paper pads? I never use them as is, so I spruced it up a bit. I just stamped in white embossing powder and added a bit of pale colors here and there with my Copics. Soft and subtle, I really like it.

I added some grass on the bottom with a die cut, but when I saw the piece of paper left after cutting, an idea hit me. I could use it as a stencil to create inked grass. So I did, just used a little sponge dauber and Distress ink for an extra dimension behind the die cut grass. Pretty neat!

Want to see some more fairies? Head over to the LOTV challenge blog check out the gorgeousness from the rest of the DT, then you'll be inspired to join in on the fun.

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Hello everyone! I was home sick today (nasty sore throat) and had some time, so I decided to join in on the Papertrey Ink blog hop. The challenge was to showcase our favorite take on flowers. Well, thanks to the talented Michelle Wooderson, I first saw gold embossed flowers on her blog a while ago. Now it is my favorite way to stamp flowers!

After embossing the Violets I water colored them and cut them out. I decided to use them to embellish a tiny envelope because my Postmarks stamp set has not seen ink yet. Yeah, terrible I know! I love making the pretty little stamps, in any color- a bunch of different stamp combinations and a matching die. So cute!

Now I'm off to check out the other blog hoppers, looks like a ton of beautiful cards to look at! Thanks for peeking in!

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Hello everyone! I tried pretty hard to stay away from the pastel colors this time, I do tend to stick with my favorite colors and next thing you know, all my stuff is starting to look the same, lol! SO I broke out the bold, bright colors and went with it.

As the title of this post says, I'm not sure what kind of animal this is, but isn't it CUTE?! This little guy is a digital image from Wee Stamps.

I colored him with my colored pencils, thinking more 'fox' like colors than squirrel, only because I like the reddish browns better than greys.

I die cut some Creatables flourishes, punched and shaped some little flowers to add some floral sprays in the corners. A big fluffy seam binding bow finishes the card.

Monday, May 23, 2011

Hello everyone, I worked on this project all day yesterday and am so glad it's done. I love the way it came out though, it looks like a little book, but actually has a compartment inside for a little gift. I love these kinds of gift packages, so different! I got the tutorial from Butternut Sage, but I did see a couple of different ways to make it on various blogs.

Here's the inside of the book box with all the pretty Prima papers and punched borders. Instead of using a ribbon closure as shown in the tutorial, I wanted to use an elastic type fastener instead. I just used a pretty brad to hook a small loop of elastic string around to keep it closed.

The sweet little fairy is from a Pergamano stamp set, colored with Copics. I added lots of Stickles around her to make her sparkle.

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Good morning blog friends, I'm back with another card to share with you. This is a totally summery one, hot tropical colors to ward off the rainy day blues I've been having for the past week! Rain, rain and more rain. The sun would come out for half a day, and then guess what? More rain... sheesh!

I was reminiscing about my trip to the Bahamas many, many moons ago and the gorgeous Hibiscus shrubs that grew absolutely everywhere. You think the flowers you see on Hibiscus plants in the gardens here are big? In the Bahamas they are the size of dinner plates! So, so beautiful. I ran across this digi from Floppy Latte Designs a while back and had to color it up.

I just used my colored pencils to color this one in, cut out one flower and popped it up for some added dimension.

I think I've had this paper for going on 3 years, a whole big book of Amy Butler patterns, and hardly ever use it. But, just so happens, it was perfect for this tropical themed card! THAT is why I never get rid of anything, lol!

Hope it warms up your day a bit, thanks for visiting and the lovely comments!

Hello everyone! I have a card for Impression Obsession's Thursday challenge. The challenge this week is 'Black and White'. This is something I really wanted to do, because I don't use much black at all outside of Halloween. This was quite a bit of struggle with me because I don't use it much, never mind black and white! However, I remembered learning about a painting technique called 'Grisaille' (griz-eye) which is usually painted almost entirely in a monochromatic color scheme, usually shades of grey. I decided to give it a try and this is what I came up with using the Framed Boat stamp...

I pulled out my Cretacolor water soluble pencils for this one, just using black and a couple of shades of grey for most of it. I did add just a touch of color to certain areas just to add some additional contrast. I was trying to emulate the old B & W photos that my grandmother used to color in by hand. Pretty striking if I do say so myself!

The background was stamped using Cover-a-Card Quilt in black Versafine, then I also added a touch of blue to certain areas to tie it all together.

Thanks for visiting, stop by the other DT's blogs for more B & W inspiration!

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Good morning everyone! Now that Mother's Day is done it's time to start on Father's Day. Easy with the nice selection of masculine images from Lili of the Valley. This one is a new release called Happy Times. Now, I know many of you might think that these are little boy stamps and not for grown men, but I will have to disagree. When you think about it, we give the men in our lives cartoon cards, or humorous cards so I feel perfectly comfortable giving them these. Besides, most men are little boys in men's bodies anyway, lol.

I colored this little guy with my colored pencils to coordinate with the papers from Cosmo Cricket. I scored myself a great deal on the Biography Little Boys collection from Michael's the other day. I happened to look down the clearance aisle and the bright red and CC's signature blue caught my eye. I found two of these 8 x 8 paper kits for .99 each! I love bargains! I know they're kinda old, but I prefer older Cosmo Cricket anyway, so I'm a happy camper.

No glitter and bows for this card, but I did sneak in some twill ribbon tied in a simple knot. I just can't seem to make a card without ribbon!

I've got to start cranking out those Father's Day cards, it'll be here before I know it!

Monday, May 16, 2011

Good morning blog friends! It's been a while since I posted anything, I know. I've had a few custom projects to do, as well as something elaborate for my Mom's upcoming birthday which took up a lot of my time this past week. I did manage to get this little cutie done in between everything else. I have to let you in on a little secret, I've got this thing for gnomes and have been hunting high and low for stamps depicting them. There are some, but nothing comes close to SU's retired Knobbly Gnomes that costs a small fortune to acquire on Ebay! I do love that set though, and hopefully some day I'll get me one. In the meantime, I came across this little darling from Poppystamps. Not a typical garden gnome, but oh so cute!

I decided I wanted to create an entire 'scene' for Peggy Polka Dot, and my inspiration for the tree and birds came from a recent video by Erin Lincolnfor PTI's Make it Monday series. Love those chubby little birds, although I have a heck of a time trying to line them up on those die cut shapes! It almost seems easier to cut out the birds by hand than trying to line them up perfectly. Shame...

Since the little gnome reminds me of the old Bavarian style, I chose to use some really earthy colors from one of Cosmo Cricket's collections. I can't remember the name of it though....

That's all for now, hope everyone has a decent Monday! Thanks for dropping by!

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Ever since I made my first exploding box, I've been thinking of all different kinds of themes that I could incorporate into more boxes. The first thing that came to mind was an airplane or balloon box for a little boy and this is what I came up with.

The only airplane stamp I had was this adorable one from PTI, but it was perfect for what I had in mind. Cloud papers, die cut clouds, what little tyke wouldn't be simply amazed to open this up?!

I was thinking of putting in a hot air balloon too, but decided it would be too busy, so I just used a little one for the tag on top of the box. I might do a totally different box with just hot air balloons though! CUTE!

The papers are from Cosmo Cricket's Earth Love. Here's a closer look at the inside:

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Hello everyone, I hope all the mothers out there had a wonderful Mother's Day. Mine was very relaxing, I got lots of time to stamp and color. I saw the 2nd birthday celebration going on over at Waltzingmouse Stamps blog with another fabulous template from the very generous Claire for this adorable Tea Bag Baggie. Of course, I had to join in on the fun. I love all things tea, and it was the perfect excuse to pull out her Afternoon Tea stamp set.

I chose some pretty SU papers to paper piece the tea pot and tea cup. I went back with a Copic marker to add some shading and dimension to them.

The template was actually pretty simple to cut out and assemble, even without a digital cutter. I know, I know, I am still in the stone age, lol! Soon, I hope, I can get one...

Anyway, a very happy 2nd birthday to WMS and I hope her continued success!

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Good morning blog friends! If you've been following along with the Lili of the Valley blogs, you may have seen some of the other DT ladies using this soon-to-be-released (just 4 more days!) stamp. I think he's just darling.

I would think that almost all little boys at some point in their young lives wish they could be a Wizard, or magician. Especially if they are Harry Potter fans, lol! (I know sometimes I wish I could be a magician, imagine how easy housework could be, lol!) Anyway, I colored this image with my colored pencils to coordinate with the Alice in Wonderland papers from Graphic 45.

I used the decorative corner stamp from the new clear Stamp G- Ornate Corners set to add a little gold embossing to the purple layer behind the image. And the Iron Gate edge punch from Martha Stewart is just the thing to tie in the whole 'magical' theme.

Well, it's my weekend off from work, so I have tons of stuff to do. Hopefully I have some stamping time, I want to finish a new magic box I'm working on!

Thursday, May 5, 2011

It's time for the Impression Obsession Thursday challenge. This week we are using our favorite IO stamp. I first discovered IO when searching for lighthouse stamps several years ago. They have a wonderful selection of them, all beautiful. But if I had to choose just one, this would be it. The Bodie Island Lighthouse. I love the setting sun behind it, and the tall, waving sea grass in the foreground.

For some reason when I use any lighthouse image for a card, I have to water color it. It just seems appropriate for any image by the sea. I used very soft, light washes of Distress Inks. Simple and fast.

The sentiment is 'Listen'. To me, the sounds of the ocean are like a symphony. I love to just listen and watch the waves and birds when visiting a beach. I wish I could live closer to the coast, I absolutely love it!

See the little pearl head 'stick pins' I stuck into the bow? They're simply pretty pins I found in the sewing section of a craft store and capped the bottoms with silver bugle beads. (Thanks to the person who posted this idea on Splitcoast Stampers!).

Do you have a favorite Impression Obsession stamp? Make a card with it and share it with us on the IO blog for a chance to win some IO bucks!

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Hello everyone, it's time for another LOTV Thursday challenge. Our challenge this week is to create a project using an animal image. This isn't too difficult really, what with all the adorable animal stamps they make!

Here's a peek at a new one coming out May 11th, 'Little Lorry Bear'. Isn't he sweet? I remember my own son creating all sorts of fun toys out of cardboard boxes, the bigger the box, the better!

I colored this image with colored pencils and Copics. I wanted to see how well they work together, and as long as I base color everything first with Copics, I can go back and shade with my colored pencils and OMS with no problem at all. There is an advantage to coloring this way, I've discovered, I can get a much smoother, even layer of color with Copics than with pencils. Especially with larger areas.

I made a little ticket book with one of the new clear stamp sets LOTV released not too long ago, Grunge Tickets. I stamped three of them on different colors of paper, cut them out, attached them booklet style and perforated them with a paper piercer. Cute!

Just one more week till the new release, hang in there!Thanks for stopping by...

Hello Everyone! I needed another thank you card-- this time for my SIL who is a fellow tea lover. THIS is why I have several different tea themed stamp sets, lol! You just never know. I decided to go with an easel card because I love this retired paper from SU (can't remember the name of it) and wanted to really showcase it. Plus the sentiment I wanted to use was very long and I knew I would have a hard time fitting it on the front of the card.

I also wanted to send her a little bit of my current favorite tea-- (Pineapple Black loose leaf tea, YUM) so I used a Waltzingmouse rubber band box template to package it in.LOVE that box! Especially because there are two sizes included in the template. It's a bit complicated to cut out (I reallllly need a digital cutter!) but so worth it!

I used the gorgeous Italian doily die from Cheery Lynn designs behind all the layers, isn't it just stunning?! For some reason, I like cutting my own doilies from my choice of papers rather than store bought ones, I don't know why. Maybe it's the paper they use for mass produced doilies, not crazy about it. I always pick them up to admire them, but never end up buying any.

Well thanks for taking a peek, I'll be back on Thursday for the new Lili of the Valley Challenge.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Hello everyone, I'm back with another card to share with you all. A bit different from my usual, using one of my favorite ink techniques with the brayer.

This gorgeous silhouette stamp from 100 Proof Press caught my eye a while back when I was browsing the SCS gallery and I had to get it for myself. I love all the fine detail and the fact that for once, I didn't color it! I chose to emboss it in black superfine detail powder on top of a brayered background.

I added some tiny little specks of white for twinkling stars and reflected ripples in the pond with an XF Sharpie Poster Paint pen, which I picked up from the brayer Queen, Michelle Zindorf. Such a tiny little detail that adds a whole lot to the finished card.

A close up:

The papers are from an SEI paper pad, the sentiment from Papertrey Ink.

This card just soothes my soul, and it's going to my brother for putting up with us last week on our visit, lol!

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Good morning everyone! I have a baby card to share with you all today using one of Mo Manning's digital images. This baby image is one of the most beautiful ones I've ever run across, I love her soft wispy hair and elegant little dress. It made me think of an heirloom christening dress in ivory lace and silk and I tried to color it that way.

The background paper was embossed with one of Sizzix's older texture plates. I always spritz my cardstock with a light mist of water before running it through my machine for a crisper impression when using the texture plates.

Baby's skin was colored with Copics and the rest of her in colored pencils. The little tag is from PTI's Tiny Tags stamp set and coordinating dies. I have a thing for really tiny tags, you can stick them almost anywhere. I really struggle adding any larger sentiments, tag or not, I can never seem to find the 'perfect' place for them on the card after I'm done. I always try to incorporate them into my card before I finish the final layout, but most times I forget until everything is attached, lol! So these tags make me happy!